BLG received the award for the provision of finished vehicle services, including the management of GMSA’s vehicle conversion and distribution centre (VCDC) where it fits parts to factory-built vehicles and provides maintenance and value-added services such as paint and dent repairs. The award was also in recognition of BLG’s movement of vehicles between the vehicle centre and both the carmaker’s Struandale plant and the port of Port Elizabeth, as well as for direct haulage of vehicles between the plant and the port.
Shane Gerber, managing director of BLG Logistics of South Africa, told Automotive Logistics News, that one of the main results enjoyed by its customers was the lowering of damage ratios which it has pushed down to what he described as “levels never before experienced. “This is a very important quality criteria in the automotive segment of our market and one we really concentrate on,” he said.
Talking about the award Gerber commented: “BLG SA is delighted to have won this award, especially from a client such as GMSA, who view these awards very seriously and reward efforts such as those mentioned,” he said. “We are proud yet we remain humble, as all those who know the automotive industry are aware how dynamic this industry is and how things can change in a very short space of time.”
BLG also handles parts business for other automotive OEMs in the region and since starting there in 2001 has become one of the main logistics providers to the industry Gerber added.
This year’s Supplier of the Year Award for services in 2011 went to NGK Ceramics South Africa, which provides catalytic converter substrate and diesel particulate filters. The company is a “tier two directed buy’ supplier to GMSA, which in turn exports the products to GM operations in North America and Europe.
According to Evan Dold, GMSA vice president of Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, NGK played a significant role in supporting late production schedule changes, due to the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan early last year, by expediting and locally finishing 22,000 substrates at their own risk. This ensured that GM North America vehicle production schedules could be met.
NGK also accommodated a localisation initiative on complex diesel products to support an urgent engineering change resulting in annual benefits to GM of R2.5m ($300,000). In doing so, GMSA maintained a secure supply of high value product.
Other category winners include: GUD Filters (Maintenance and Repair), Rex Diff and Gearbox (Collision and Powertrain), Carmat (Accessories), Bearing Man (P&A Warehouse), Onvlee Engineering and Principle Plastics (Body Exterior), Goodyear SA (Pty) Ltd and Tenneco Ride Control South Africa (Chassis), Smiths Manufacturing and LUK/Schaeffler (Electrical Systems, Heating, Ventilation and Air-conditioning, and Powertrain), 360 Degrees Production, MC Design and Contracting and Easigas (Indirect Purchasing), and Supreme Spring (Component Exports). This year, there was also a special award for AutoMatrix..
Pictured from left to right at last week’s event in Port Elizabeth are Edgar Lourencon, president of GM Sub-Saharan Africa, Evan Dold, GMSA vice president of Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, Mike Shibata, managing director of NGK Ceramics South Africa, Johnny Saldanha, GMIO vice president of Global Purchasing and Supply Chain and Mike Pienaar, GMSA component exports manager.
